![How to Prepare Water For Hydroponics [Updated]](https://i3.ytimg.com/vi/43zTp9A7Td0/maxresdefault.jpg)
How to Prepare Water For Hydroponics [Updated]
video description
Date: 2022-07-18
Related videos
Comments and reviews: 15
cdh79
all in all a good video, however (if i may) i would like to state some points: while GHE does mention a specific amount of nutrients on the label, please be aware that this is based on pure RO water, that starts out with an EC of 0 (most manufacturers instructions are based on that. so if you start out with 330ppm tap water (i assume that's the Hanna method of calculating ppm. Truncheon and Eutech also use ppm, but they are NOT the same, 500ppm Hanna are 640ppm Eutech and 700ppm Truncheon, so i'd stay away from ppm completely, as it can get very confusing when someone says use 500ppm and you don't know which of those scales is actually meant. so i'd say just use EC instead, that's clear in millisiemens/microsiemens, then you're basically at 0. 66 mS. this is on the higher side, but still ok (my tap-water has 0. 8 mS, so i use an RO filter and then mix some RO water and tap-water together to get a starting point of around 0. 3 to 0. 4 mS, as with pure RO i wouldn't have enough calcium and magnesium and i don't want to re-add that chemically. my bottle of hard water GHE micro is still too full to replace it with the regular one that includes more ca and mg) and it basically means that you have a lot of salts in the water already.
i highly suggest checking EC after having added the nutrients, so you know how many combined salts you will actually feed your plants. if you follow the manufacturers advice, but don't remove your baseline EC first, you might overshoot what the plant can uptake and go into a nutrient saturation or even lockout (which is definitely worse and more difficult to get out of than a deficiency. for most plants there are tables what a good EC for nutrient uptake is, based on their vegetative stage (seedling, veg, flowering, but if you really want to be clear on not over- and not under-feeding the plants, you should monitor the PH and EC levels each day. As you're using a recirculating system, when the EC in your reservoir drops down from what you have mixed, then the plant is using more nutrients than water, so you can up the nutrients by a little. If the EC goes up in the container, then it means that the plants take up more water and less nutrients, and you should lower the amount of nutrients. it'd be perfect if the amount of EC stays around the same over time. (this does not take any water evaporation into account. there might be some PH drift as well (mostly upward during veg and downward during flowering, which is ok, and should closely be monitored daily as well, but that's a different topic.
reply
all in all a good video, however (if i may) i would like to state some points: while GHE does mention a specific amount of nutrients on the label, please be aware that this is based on pure RO water, that starts out with an EC of 0 (most manufacturers instructions are based on that. so if you start out with 330ppm tap water (i assume that's the Hanna method of calculating ppm. Truncheon and Eutech also use ppm, but they are NOT the same, 500ppm Hanna are 640ppm Eutech and 700ppm Truncheon, so i'd stay away from ppm completely, as it can get very confusing when someone says use 500ppm and you don't know which of those scales is actually meant. so i'd say just use EC instead, that's clear in millisiemens/microsiemens, then you're basically at 0. 66 mS. this is on the higher side, but still ok (my tap-water has 0. 8 mS, so i use an RO filter and then mix some RO water and tap-water together to get a starting point of around 0. 3 to 0. 4 mS, as with pure RO i wouldn't have enough calcium and magnesium and i don't want to re-add that chemically. my bottle of hard water GHE micro is still too full to replace it with the regular one that includes more ca and mg) and it basically means that you have a lot of salts in the water already.
i highly suggest checking EC after having added the nutrients, so you know how many combined salts you will actually feed your plants. if you follow the manufacturers advice, but don't remove your baseline EC first, you might overshoot what the plant can uptake and go into a nutrient saturation or even lockout (which is definitely worse and more difficult to get out of than a deficiency. for most plants there are tables what a good EC for nutrient uptake is, based on their vegetative stage (seedling, veg, flowering, but if you really want to be clear on not over- and not under-feeding the plants, you should monitor the PH and EC levels each day. As you're using a recirculating system, when the EC in your reservoir drops down from what you have mixed, then the plant is using more nutrients than water, so you can up the nutrients by a little. If the EC goes up in the container, then it means that the plants take up more water and less nutrients, and you should lower the amount of nutrients. it'd be perfect if the amount of EC stays around the same over time. (this does not take any water evaporation into account. there might be some PH drift as well (mostly upward during veg and downward during flowering, which is ok, and should closely be monitored daily as well, but that's a different topic.
reply
JMOF
Hi I heard that it is recommended that you lower your ph first and then add the nutrients because if the ph is wrong they might not dissolve well and or precipitate out of solution and also I heard that it is also recommended to dissolve your ph adjuster in some water because if you add it straight in the local ph drop might make them fall out of solution (I also use flora series.
O and also I have a question do you have an alternative way of calibrating my ppm meter and don't want to buy the solution because it is to expensive.
Thanks
reply
Hi I heard that it is recommended that you lower your ph first and then add the nutrients because if the ph is wrong they might not dissolve well and or precipitate out of solution and also I heard that it is also recommended to dissolve your ph adjuster in some water because if you add it straight in the local ph drop might make them fall out of solution (I also use flora series.
O and also I have a question do you have an alternative way of calibrating my ppm meter and don't want to buy the solution because it is to expensive.
Thanks
reply
Peleg
Great video, except that be careful with what you infer from the pH drop: what you did at most tells you that the pH-down solution has itself a pH of about 2. 5 (if you wish, I'll provide the full calculation) - and even that is only true if we were talking about strong acids and bases, which is not the case (and thus there's also the added complexity of buffers forming in your solution.
Remeber always that the pH scale is NOT LINEAR, and measuring always saves you from possible mistakes later: )
reply
Great video, except that be careful with what you infer from the pH drop: what you did at most tells you that the pH-down solution has itself a pH of about 2. 5 (if you wish, I'll provide the full calculation) - and even that is only true if we were talking about strong acids and bases, which is not the case (and thus there's also the added complexity of buffers forming in your solution.
Remeber always that the pH scale is NOT LINEAR, and measuring always saves you from possible mistakes later: )
reply
AJ
What other nutrients can I also use I got something called Black Magic a black magic be is that okay to also add with the same type of nutrients you added? I'm growing tomatoes literally tomatoes. I know Tomatoes want a higher PPM than leafy greens and I have a chart or totality what PPM Tomatoes prefer but kind of wondering what additional nutrients I can add to make my plants grow better. Thank you love your videos!
reply
What other nutrients can I also use I got something called Black Magic a black magic be is that okay to also add with the same type of nutrients you added? I'm growing tomatoes literally tomatoes. I know Tomatoes want a higher PPM than leafy greens and I have a chart or totality what PPM Tomatoes prefer but kind of wondering what additional nutrients I can add to make my plants grow better. Thank you love your videos!
reply
Gaspacho79
Just a little heads up: because ph is logarithmic and the ph down solution has ph itself, the linear rule that 1/2 ounce reduces 0. 6 ph does not work at all in theory. It maay work decently well in the 6-8 scale though, but it's something to keep in mind since re-measuring the ph takes little to no work.
In any case, I really like your videos both the hydro series and the dirt series. Keep it up!
reply
Just a little heads up: because ph is logarithmic and the ph down solution has ph itself, the linear rule that 1/2 ounce reduces 0. 6 ph does not work at all in theory. It maay work decently well in the 6-8 scale though, but it's something to keep in mind since re-measuring the ph takes little to no work.
In any case, I really like your videos both the hydro series and the dirt series. Keep it up!
reply
Chuck
Nice video but I had figured out 100% of the info
My problem is to keep the water quality. I change my water once a month, I have 2 filters one in the tank and one outside. Still, after a week, my water is full of stuff that blocks my pipes stop my system from functionning well.
If u guys have solutions to preserve the quality of the water after preparation, I would be forever gratefull.
reply
Nice video but I had figured out 100% of the info
My problem is to keep the water quality. I change my water once a month, I have 2 filters one in the tank and one outside. Still, after a week, my water is full of stuff that blocks my pipes stop my system from functionning well.
If u guys have solutions to preserve the quality of the water after preparation, I would be forever gratefull.
reply
Molon
No! You don't know what you are doing. You tested the tds and left it at 330 parts per million. Do you know what those 330 parts per million are? I bet you don't. I would filter the water to zero tds, and then add the nutrients. I don't check ph but if I did, I would check it after doing these things. TDS is all I worry about and things seem to work out fine if I get it right
reply
No! You don't know what you are doing. You tested the tds and left it at 330 parts per million. Do you know what those 330 parts per million are? I bet you don't. I would filter the water to zero tds, and then add the nutrients. I don't check ph but if I did, I would check it after doing these things. TDS is all I worry about and things seem to work out fine if I get it right
reply
Jeorge
I am currently fighting root rot with H202 37% in a 7 gallon DWC. How long will it take to dissipate the H202 in the res so I can add the Hydroguard to add benificial bacteria? Also do I need to de-chlorinate my tap water before using the Hydroguard? I have read that chlorine in tap water can kill beneficial bacteria as well as the bad stuff.
reply
I am currently fighting root rot with H202 37% in a 7 gallon DWC. How long will it take to dissipate the H202 in the res so I can add the Hydroguard to add benificial bacteria? Also do I need to de-chlorinate my tap water before using the Hydroguard? I have read that chlorine in tap water can kill beneficial bacteria as well as the bad stuff.
reply
Loissupes
Hi. I have been thinking about getting a tower garden (juice plus) for quite a while now but I don't like the fact they you are supposed to use their tonics. I assume from this video, it isn't an issue to use a different brand of fertilizer? Thanks so much! I am trying to learn as much as I can.
reply
Hi. I have been thinking about getting a tower garden (juice plus) for quite a while now but I don't like the fact they you are supposed to use their tonics. I assume from this video, it isn't an issue to use a different brand of fertilizer? Thanks so much! I am trying to learn as much as I can.
reply
Lynelle
HI! Thank you! I have a chart which show the different PPM and EC needs for each plant. I discovered that the Aggressive Flora mix is still way under those numbers when mixed. I am thinking about tomatoes and cucumbers at this moment. What do we do? Ignore it or try to increase the measurements?
reply
HI! Thank you! I have a chart which show the different PPM and EC needs for each plant. I discovered that the Aggressive Flora mix is still way under those numbers when mixed. I am thinking about tomatoes and cucumbers at this moment. What do we do? Ignore it or try to increase the measurements?
reply
Sukirti
okay, so the water stays stationary? i have read/seen about use of water pumps and air pumps. what would u suggest abt that? I wana experiment hydropony for the first time, but don't have the pipe setup, so was wondering if i can use a tub setup like this, and what pumps will that need
reply
okay, so the water stays stationary? i have read/seen about use of water pumps and air pumps. what would u suggest abt that? I wana experiment hydropony for the first time, but don't have the pipe setup, so was wondering if i can use a tub setup like this, and what pumps will that need
reply
chad
I bought general hydroponics pH up and down and was going to buy the 3 bottle bundle, but then I looked into GH and sadly it looks like they sold out to the big corporations, Monsanto, Scott's miracle gro, whatever it is, so I'm gonna go to my local store hopefully they have better stuff
reply
I bought general hydroponics pH up and down and was going to buy the 3 bottle bundle, but then I looked into GH and sadly it looks like they sold out to the big corporations, Monsanto, Scott's miracle gro, whatever it is, so I'm gonna go to my local store hopefully they have better stuff
reply
adam
You did do a few little things wrong but I like the way you know your still learning and can put your hands up and say ok maybe I could of done it a little different have respect for that rather than the screw you approach used by lots of growers when they get criticised. Respect
reply
You did do a few little things wrong but I like the way you know your still learning and can put your hands up and say ok maybe I could of done it a little different have respect for that rather than the screw you approach used by lots of growers when they get criticised. Respect
reply
zayvier69
Im confused
You used three bottles of liquid to make the nutrient solution food the adjusted ph
All I use is the first bottle called micro flora 5 0 1 general hydroponics solution and then adjust ph
Am I doing it wrong? Should I be using all three
reply
Im confused
You used three bottles of liquid to make the nutrient solution food the adjusted ph
All I use is the first bottle called micro flora 5 0 1 general hydroponics solution and then adjust ph
Am I doing it wrong? Should I be using all three
reply
nitin
Can u help me
I just want to know about the complete process for lettuce harveting in nft
Can we use normal water for plant or every time we give nutriant & in a day how much nutriant are requried for a palnt
Pls rply me
Thanks & regards
reply
Can u help me
I just want to know about the complete process for lettuce harveting in nft
Can we use normal water for plant or every time we give nutriant & in a day how much nutriant are requried for a palnt
Pls rply me
Thanks & regards
reply
Add a review, comment
Other channel videos
